1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a female connector for an IC card.
2. Description of the Related Art
FIGS. 5 to 7 show a known female connector for an IC card. Referring to FIG. 5, an IC card C2 comprises a box-shaped cover 21 made of a metal, a printed circuit board 22 provided with a wiring pattern, not shown, and various electrical devices, and a female connector 25 comprising a housing 23 formed by molding a synthetic resin, and a plurality of terminal pins 24. The printed circuit board 22 is fixed in place by a suitable means in the cover 21. The printed circuit board 22 is electrically shielded by the cover 21. The housing 23 of the female connector 25 is fitted in an open end of the cover 21. The terminal pins 24 of the female connector 25 are connected to the wiring pattern of the printed circuit board 22. A plurality of contact pins 26 of an electronic apparatus, not shown, can be inserted into the female connector 25 of the IC card C2 so as to be electrically connected to the terminal pins 24 and pulled out of the female connector 25.
The housing 23 of the known female connector 25 included in the IC card C2 is formed of an insulating material in the shape of a rectangular solid. The housing 23 is provided with contact pin receiving holes 23a arranged in two rows so as to open in the front end surface thereof, and terminal pin receiving holes 23b connected to the contact pin receiving holes 23a, respectively, and opening in a back end surface thereof. The terminal pins 24 are inserted in the terminal pin receiving holes 23b, respectively. Each terminal pin 24 is formed by bending a metal plate and has a flat base part 24a, an elastic contact part 24b continuous with a front portion of the base part 24a, a bent part 24c continuous with in a back portion of the base part 24a, and a terminal part 24d projecting from the back end of the base part 24a as shown in FIG. 5.
The respective front portions of the base parts 24a of the terminal pin 24 are inserted through the open back ends of the terminal receiving holes 23b of the housing 23 so that the front ends of the front end parts 24a reach near the contact pin receiving holes 23a as shown in FIG. 6. In this state, the bent parts 24c are forced into the back sections of the terminal pin receiving holes 23b and thereby the terminal pins 24 are held on the housing 23, and the front portions of the base parts 24a and the contact parts 24b are loosely fitted in the terminal pin receiving holes 23b.
The contact pins 26 are inserted in and pulled out of the terminal pin receiving holes 23b through the contact pin receiving holes 23a of the female connector 25. The contact pins 26 inserted through the contact pin receiving holes 23a in the terminal pin receiving holes 23b are brought into engagement with the contact parts 24b of the terminal pins 24, respectively. Thus, the contact pins 26 slide along the contact parts 24b of the terminal pins 24 when the same are inserted in and taken out of the terminal pin receiving holes 23b. When each contact pin 26 is inserted in the terminal pin receiving hole 23b, the free front end portion of the base part 24a is raised by frictional force in the direction of the arrow A (FIG. 7). When each contact pin 26 is pulled out of the terminal pin receiving hole 23b, the front end portion of the base part 24a is depressed in the direction of the arrow B (FIG. 7). Consequently, buckling load is exerted repeatedly on the base part 24a of the terminal pin 24 to cause the base part 24a of the terminal pins 24 in a short period of use.
Since the front end portion of the base part 24a and the contact part 24b of the terminal pin 24 of the known female connector for an IC card are loosely fitted in the terminal pin receiving hole 23b of the housing 23, the buckling load is exerted repeatedly on the base part 24a of the terminal pin 24 by the frictional force exerted by the contact pin 26 on the contact part 24b every time the contact pin 26 is inserted in the terminal pin receiving hole 23b, whereby the base part 24a is buckled and caused to break in a short period of use.